Not Accounted For
by hesterxprying
Summary: Ashley returns to an old friend after 5 years, but doesnt get the reaction she hoped for...
1. Chapter 1

Yes, I know, another fic. But I just get these ideas in my head that SCREAM! Lala. Enjoy. And I hope you will, cuz this one is actually half decent! ; )

Not Accounted For 

Chapter one

Ashley hastily shoved clothes into a duffel bag. Toothbrush, bra, underwear, brush. All were thrown into the bag. If something fell out, she didn't care. She had to get away. She swung her bag over her shoulder and opened the window. Grasping the ivy, she climbed down the wall, away from her bedroom window. She landed on the cold earth with a soft thud and immediately continued her escape.

She quietly opened the iron gate of her home. The metal felt cool in the summer air. Everything was silent except for her footsteps on the paved sidewalk and the sound of a distant car. _You'll be fine_, she thought to herself, _who would be driving at three in the morning anyway?_

She slowly came to an intersection and looked for any creeps walking around. Ever since her mom had died and Toby had committed suicide, Ashley had been trapped with her cruel stepfather. He hadn't taken her mothers death lightly, and had taken up drinking.

She looked down quickly as a familiar orange car drove by. Jay stopping to say hello would not help at the moment. She turned another corner and passed by The Dot. She noticed how different it was at night. She was so used to seeing Spinner inside taking orders and hearing the chatting voices and the sizzles of burgers on the grill. She crossed at the intersection and arrived at her destination. The cracked and rusty letters on the mailbox still read "Nash". She walked up the overgrown path and knocked on the door.

I'll update if I get two (hopefully positive) reviews. Thankies!


	2. Reunited

Hello again! This is Chapter two of "Not Accounted For". I am so happy! This was the first fic I've written where the first chapter didn't get bad reviews. Wheee! Enjoy!

Not Accounted For

Chapter 2

No one answered the door. Ashley knocked again and turned to look at the yard. The grass was grayish and overgrown, the rusty mailbox looked as if it were about to fall over, and there was a small heap of trash and what looked like… eww… along the rotting fence. She could tell the fence was once painted white, but the paint was chipped, revealing the grayish wood beneath it.

Ashley turned around at the sound of the creaking door. A young woman stood in the doorway. Ashley recognized her, but it was difficult. Ellie's hair was no longer bouncy and red, but rusty brown and slightly matted. Her Eyeliner was smudged and she had deep purple sags under her eyes. Ashley also noticed that through the stained t-shirt and jeans, Ellie was skinny. Very skinny. She only saw this for a moment, because soon she was staring at the door again. She knocked on the door again. "Ellie! Open up. It's me. It's-" The door swung open immediately.

"It's what? My best friend? My best friend who left me alone with my mother for 5 years so she could travel around the world with her boyfriend?" It was hard to admit, but Ellie was right. Ashley had been living with Ellie for a while, after her mother died, and paid the rent once a week. She knew perfectly well that the rent money helped pay the bill for Ms. Nash's medication. Then one day Craig announced that Downtown Sasquatch was going on tour. She had told Ellie, but she insisted that she needed Ashley's rent. Ashley spent the next couple nights in turmoil. She woke up one morning before anyone else had. She wrote a note and left 200 hundred dollars on the table. When the tour was over, she was too ashamed to return to Ellie, so she returned home. Soon after, her Toby was dead, and she was alone.

"Ellie," Ashley said calmly, "please. What I did, it was wrong, I know that. But I needed freedom. You have to understand how hard we worked for that tour. And I…" her eyes were moist. "I thought you could handle it."

Ellie sighed and walked into the house. Ashley took that as "come in", so she did. The house looked the same, but now a musty smell hung in the air. Ellie sat down on a sagging couch. Ashley sat down in one of the chairs. She looked around questioningly, but she didn't have to ask. "She's dead. An overdose."

"I'm sorry." Ashley truly was. When Ellie's mom was sober, she was a great person; she was never one to judge a person by appearance or race.

Ellie glanced down almost immediately. Ashley knew she was holding back tears. "What's with the bag?" Ashley gulped. This was the part that she had been dreading…

"I'd still pay the rent and everything," Ellie sighed. She clearly did not want to have someone living in the house.

"And I would mow the lawn." A smile crept to the edges of Ellie's mouth.

" It does need it." They both started to laugh quietly. They walked up the stairs to Ashley's new room, and she told her best friend everything.


End file.
